Transgender Man Sues Houston Police for Wrongful Arrest and Calling Him Not a Real Man

Houston police, we have a problem. A transman is suing two Houston Police officers who allegedly taunted the man during an arrest. Kris Smith said that the officers made fun of him for “not being a real man” and wrongfully arresting and imprisoning him. Smith has filed a lawsuit and is asking for $1 million in damages.

A trans man is suing two Houston Police officers as well as the city after they hurled abuse at him during an arrest.

“That’s a severe bullying technique that they use and they think they can get away with it because it’s just conversation,’ Smith told the Chronicle. :”They think it’s OK, and it’s not OK. It’s bullying, and no one deserves that.”

After being accused of trespassing at a Burger King, and arrested. He told the officers that due to safety reasons he should be brought to a women’s prison because he’s trans, but the officers allegedly said they weren’t concerned about his safety. “They told me they don’t care if I [don’t] have a penis,” he said. “They’ll put me in the guys’ side anyway.”

This is exactly why we need comprehensive training for law enforcement when it concerns transgender individuals.